--- title: "Match Cushion Color to a Photo: Send It, Get Chart Codes" url: "https://cushionguide.com/answers/match-cushion-color-from-photo/" section: "The Cutting Table" author: "Élodie Marchand, The Colorist of New Orleans" author_url: "https://cushionguide.com/masters/elodie/" published: "2026-08-17" updated: "2026-09-24" keywords: "match cushion colour to photo, match cushion color to photo, cushion fabric color matching, closest fabric code from a picture, cushion fabric swatches" --- # If I send a photo, can you tell me which of your colors matches best? *Yes, and it's one of the loveliest questions a cushion maker gets. A photo is where the search begins; a swatch in your own window light is the finish line.* Also asked as: Do you have colors like terracotta clay?; Which color is the best match to this picture? > **The quick answer:** Yes, a cushion color can be matched from a photo: send a picture of the color you want, your sofa or your room, and the workshop compares it with its fabric charts, names the closest codes, checks stock in your fabric type and sends the options photographed side by side. Screens vary, so for a large piece, order swatches of your shortlist before committing. ![Sage green and cream velvet floor sofa under hanging planters and pothos, with wicker baskets, palms and a jute rug](https://cushionguide.com/media/modular-floor-sofas/sage-velvet-floor-sofa-botanical-plant-room-1600.webp "An indoor jungle of hanging planters, palms and pothos frames a sage-edged floor sofa.") ## Key facts - The workshop matches customer photos to fabric chart codes. - Stock is checked in the fabric type you prefer. - Side-by-side fabric photos are sent for comparison. - Velvet 924 was the closest dark olive, and L-24 the closest green linen, to real photos. - Velvet 34 was the closest match for a green couch; velvet #35 matched a pea green. - Bench-cushion codes and floor-cushion numbers come from different charts. - Swatches of shortlisted colors can be ordered to confirm a match. - Fabric swatches are palm-sized, about 4 x 4 to 6 x 6 in, and usually reach the US in 3-5 days. - The outdoor range alone has about 150-200 colors on its own charts. ## What happens to the photo you send The eye sits down first. So send the thing your eye already loves: a sofa, a painting, a paint chip, a corner of the room. The workshop lays it beside the fabric charts, names the nearest codes, checks they're in stock in the fabric you want, and sends photos of the options side by side. Past matches read like a paint box: L-24 for a green floor cushion, velvet 924 for a dark olive nook, velvet 34 for a green couch, #35 for a pea green, Tobacco for a warm orange-brown, mint for the same tone as a canopy. For a room with warm beige walls and dark wood, the suggestion was dark olive velvet to echo the sofa. The codes live on different charts, so bench-cushion codes and floor-cushion numbers aren't interchangeable. The Pattern on [matching a cushion to your sofa, paint or wallpaper](https://cushionguide.com/guides/match-cushion-to-sofa-paint-wallpaper/) goes further, and [screen color versus daylight](https://cushionguide.com/guides/cushion-color-screen-vs-daylight/) explains why the swatch has the final word. What are you matching, my friends: a sofa, a painting, or a color you remember? ## Sending a photo that can be matched 1. **Shoot in daylight**: Near a window, flash off, so the color isn't tinted by a bulb. 2. **Show the neighbors**: Include the sofa, rug or wall the cushion will sit against. 3. **Name the fabric type**: [Velvet](https://cushionguide.com/fabrics/velvet/), linen or corduroy, so stock is checked in the right one. 4. **Shortlist, then swatch**: For a large piece, order swatches of the closest codes before you commit. ## Copper tones in a curtain print A buyer in the US sent photos of a green couch and of curtains with copper tones in the print. For the couch, the workshop pointed to velvet 34. For the copper, the buyer shortlisted four codes, 12, 37, 14 and 21, and ordered swatches of each to hold against the curtains themselves. That is the whole method in one home: photo, shortlist, swatch, decide. > **Tailor's margin:** A photo gets a cushion color onto a shortlist; a swatch held in your own daylight decides it, especially before a large piece. > Send a photo of the sofa, painting or wall, and the workshop names the closest fabric codes; a swatch in daylight makes the final call. > > — Élodie Marchand ## Buyer questions **A common question:** Which of your colors best matches my photo or my room? **The workshop's answer:** Send a photo and the workshop suggests the closest codes with photos to compare: L-24 for a green floor cushion, velvet 924 for a dark olive nook, L-02 with 914 piping from a reference picture. For a living room with warm beige walls and dark wood, it suggested dark olive velvet to match the sofa. **A common question:** Can you suggest the closest fabric color to my furniture? **The workshop's answer:** Yes. Send a photo of the color or the furniture and the workshop compares it with its charts. Real suggestions include corduroy 913 or 932, linen K8 as a close match, and 931 to match a bed frame. **A common question:** Will your mint match the green canopy in my photo? **The workshop's answer:** The workshop compared the photo and said mint is the same tone. White or salmon were other options for the same room. **A common question:** Can you match a color from a painting or my existing chairs? **The workshop's answer:** Yes. Tobacco or blue were suggested for a painting and color 4 gray to match chairs. Stock is checked in the fabric type you want, and the options are photographed side by side. **A common question:** Can you find a pea green from a photo? **The workshop's answer:** Yes. Compared with the velvet chart, the pea green matched velvet #35; another buyer was steered to Tobacco for a warm orange-brown. ## Questions buyers ask next ### Is a photo match enough before ordering a large cushion? Use it to narrow the field, not to decide. Screens vary, so order swatches of your shortlist and compare them in the room, in daylight, before committing to a large piece. ### Do fabric codes carry over between cushion types? Not always. Bench-cushion charts and floor-cushion charts use different numbering, so name the product you're ordering when you ask for a match, and the answer comes from the right chart. ### Can the workshop suggest piping from the same photo? Yes. From one reference picture it suggested linen L-02 with 914 piping. Ask for the body and piping fabrics photographed side by side before you decide. ## Related at the atelier - [What fabric and piping are on the cushion in your listing photo?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/listing-photo-fabric-piping-codes/): Send a screenshot of the exact listing photo, and the workshop names both the fabric code and the piping code. - [Do I pay extra for a custom color on my cushion?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/custom-cushion-color-extra-cost/): No, a custom color does not cost extra: any color on the workshop's fabric charts can be made on any cushion at no added cost, ordered by its code. - [Can I see close-ups or samples of the fabric before I order?](https://cushionguide.com/answers/fabric-samples-close-up-photos-before-ordering/): Yes: close-ups and real-life photos of specific fabric codes and color pairings are sent on request, and samples from the fabric-samples listing are the recommended way to judge texture in hand. - [Custom Bench Cushion in Cream Bouclé: Codes, Swatches, Notes](https://cushionguide.com/readings/cream-boucle-walnut-bench-navy-paris-apartment/): To order a custom bench cushion right the first time, send the exact size in inches, the thickness, the fabric code and the piping code in one note, then confirm the color with close-up photos or a… - [Lumbar Pillow in Plum Velvet on a Gray Bouclé Bed](https://cushionguide.com/readings/purple-velvet-lumbar-gray-boucle-bed-marble/): To order a velvet lumbar pillow in the exact color you want, request a physical swatch by its fabric code, check it on your own bed in daylight and lamp light, then write the code and exact size in… - [Custom Throw Pillows in Mustard: How Light Changes the Color](https://cushionguide.com/readings/mustard-pebble-weave-macro-piped-pillow-corner/): Judge custom throw pillow colors in daylight, not on a screen: screens can shift a shade slightly, and warm lamplight deepens a mustard that morning light at a window shows cleaner. - [How to order fabric swatches that actually settle the decision](https://cushionguide.com/guides/fabric-swatches-before-ordering/) - [Why the color on your screen isn't the cushion you'll get, and how to choose](https://cushionguide.com/guides/cushion-color-screen-vs-daylight/) *With color and care — Élodie* --- Written by Élodie Marchand (https://cushionguide.com/masters/elodie/) for CushionGuide (https://cushionguide.com/about/). The site explains made-to-measure cushions and the partner workshop makes them; measurements are in inches first. This Markdown mirrors the page at https://cushionguide.com/answers/match-cushion-color-from-photo/